Coatings and materials can become soiled from debris (particles, insects, oils, etc.) impacting the surface. The debris affects airflow over the surface as well as aesthetics and normally is removed by washing. Insect impact residue affects vehicle fuel economy, aesthetics, and operator vision. On aircraft, insect residue interferes with airflow over a surface, increasing drag and thus fuel consumption. On automobiles, the light dispersion of headlights, operator vision through the windshield, and aesthetic appeal are degraded from insect remains.
Many solutions to reduce insect debris, such as mechanical scrapers, sacrificial continually released liquid layers, and passive coatings with engineered topology have been flight tested. However, the best-performing liquid layer release systems add a large size and weight penalty while the durability of nanostructured surfaces on aircraft or automobile surfaces is unproven. Attempts to mitigate insect accumulation during the early days of aircraft development included mechanical scrapers, deflectors, traps, in-flight detachable surfaces, in-flight dissolvable surfaces, viscous surface fluids, continuous washing fluids, and suction slots. The results of most of these trials were determined ineffective or impractical for commercial use.
One approach to this problem is to create a passive, self-cleaning surface that removes debris from itself by controlling chemical interactions between the debris and the surface. Passive coatings that reduce insect debris are desirable because they have less parasitic mass and do not require the wiring and energy of active systems. No commercial coating provides sufficient residue reduction. While superhydrophobic surfaces perform well in laboratory testing, their limited durability due to fragile asperities and high solid filling fractions are barriers to adoption. In contrast, currently used highly durable aircraft and automotive coatings are lightly filled polymer systems.
Recently, Wohl et al., “Evaluation of commercially available materials to mitigate insect residue adhesion on wing leading edge surfaces,”Progress in Organic Coatings 76 (2013) 42-50 describe work at NASA to create anti-insect adhesion or “bugphobic” surfaces. Wohl et al. tested the effect of organic-based coatings on insect adhesion to surfaces, but the coatings did not fully mitigate the issue. Wohl et al. also describe previously used approaches to reduce bug adhesion such as mechanical scrapers, deflectors, paper and/or other coverings, elastic surfaces, soluble films, and washing the surface continually with fluid.
Superhydrophobic and superoleophobic surfaces create very high contact angles (>150°) between the surface and drops of water and oil, respectively. The high contact angles result in the drops rolling off the surface rather than remaining on the surface. These surfaces do not repel solid foreign matter or vapors of contaminants. Once soiled by impact, debris will remain on the surface and render it ineffective. Also, these surfaces lose function if the nanostructured top surface is scratched.
Enzyme-filled coatings leech out enzymes that dissolve debris on the surface. However, enzymes are quickly depleted and cannot be refilled, rendering this approach impractical.
Kok et al., “Influence of surface characteristics on insect residue adhesion to aircraft leading edge surfaces,”Progress in Organic Coatings 76 (2013) 1567-1575, describe various polymer, sol-gel, and superhydrophobic coatings tested for reduced insect adhesion after impact. The best-performing materials were high-roughness, superhydrophobic surfaces. However, they did not show that debris could be removed from the superhydrophobic surfaces once insects broke on the surface.
Polymeric materials having low surface energies are widely used for non-stick coatings. These materials are tailored with careful control of their chemical composition (thus surface energy) and mechanical properties. Polymers containing low-energy perfluoropolyethers and perfluoroalkyl groups have been explored for low adhesion and solvent repellency applications. While these low-energy polymers facilitate release of materials adhering to them in both air and water, they do not necessarily provide a lubricated surface to promote clearance of foreign substances. See Vaidya and Chaudhury, “Synthesis and Surface Properties of Environmentally Responsive Segmented Polyurethanes,”Journal of Colloid and Interface Science 249, 235-245 (2002). A fluorinated polyurethane is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,332,798 issued Jul. 26, 1994 to Ferreri et al.
Fluoropolymer sheets or treated surfaces have low surface energies and thus low adhesion force between foreign matter and the surface. However, friction between impacting debris and the surface results in the sticking of contaminants.
Fluorofluid-filled surfaces have very low adhesion between impacting debris and the surface. However, if any of the fluid is lost, the surface cannot be refilled/renewed once applied on the vehicle, and thus loses its properties (see Wong et al., “Bioinspired self-repairing slippery surfaces with pressure-stable omniphobicity,”Nature 477, 443-447, 2011).
In view of the shortcomings in the art, improved coating materials and systems, and compositions suitable for these systems, are needed. In particular, what is desired commercially is a highly durable, low-friction coating to reduce drag and improve visibility. Passive coatings that reduce insect debris are desirable because they have less parasitic mass and do not require the wiring and energy of active systems.